Snow fence



Patented Nov. 20, 1945 UNITED STATESV PATENT, ortica] Poul Tholstrup,

Alien Application In 3 Claims.

The present invention relates to an improved snow fence for preventing the collecting of snow in drifts.

Such snow fences are erected temporarily in the wintertime along great distances, and their practical value is dependent not only on their ability to retain the drifting snow, but upon the costs of their production, erection, and subsequent removal, as well as upon their durability. Various forms of snow fences have been proposed, as for instance those made of a number of wooden bars arranged parallel in vertical, horizontal, or oblique positions or arranged crosswise with respect to each other, in rows, and fixed in any suitable Imanner with suitable spacing between the adiacent bars. These types of snow fences are comparatively expensive, and experience shows that they do not provide the screening effect obtained by means of snow fences consisting of elements having a surface that offers greater air resistance than do comparatively smooth bars.

Snow fences of plaited material such as rope or the like are likewise known, but they are more expensive to produce than the above described wooden fences, and they are very heavy to han- `dle while erecting or removing them.

The object of the present invention is to provide means for producing an eicient snow fence that is cheap to produce, transport, set up, and remove after use. The snow fence according to this invention is mainly characterized by the ccmbination of a number of bands arranged in rows above each other and relatively spaced, and substantially parallel to the soil in which the posts are inserted in vertical position.

The bands employed according to the present invention are made of straw or wood-shavings (excelsior) or similar material, twisted in known manner to form a rope-like element of the straw may be sewn or in any other suitable manner assembled with a rope, which serves as the carrier member of the band.

Bands of this kind are exceedingly easy to make, and they are very light in weight, and accordingly are easy to apply and remove from the posts, which are provided with supports for this purpose.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which I Figure 1 is a side elevation of a snow fence in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 2 is a vertical section taken through Figure 1, and,

Figure 3 is an elevation of a portion of one of Roskilde, Denmark; vested in the Property Custodian February 3, 1940, Serial No. 317,139 Denmark February 9, 1939 the bands, involving straw attached to a. carrier member consisting of a rope.

Referring in detail to the drawing, the numeral I indicates a band attached to a number of posts 2 by means of supports each comprising a block 3 affixed to the post and provided with an incision 4, into which the band I is inserted laterally while erecting the fence. The blocks 3 are arranged on each post in such a manner that the desired spacing between the bands after their insertion within the incision is obtained.

Preferably the lower end of each post is provided with a spade-like wider part 5. When inserting this end of the post into the soil, the spadelike part lies in the longitudinal plane of the fence. In this manner it is possible to provide a comparatively great resistance againstupsetting of the fence, even if posts of a light construction are employed. Furthermore, the driving of the posts into the soil is facilitated.

Instead of making the bands of straw, a material such as wood-shavings may be used, and

may be sewed or attached by other suitable means to a rope or line 6 that serves as the carrier member of the band. In Figure 3 there is shown a portion of a straw and rope band wherein short straws are attached transversely of the carrier rope 6.

Through experiments it has been found that the rows of bands should cover about one-haii' of the surface area of the fence, so that accordingly the space between the bands will substantially correspond to the cross section of a band, taken on a vertical plane. The brush-like bands suspended between each pair of posts have a con-- siderable checking effect on currents of air passing through the fence, and owing to the swinging of the bands brought about by the wind, there are caused whirls in the air whereby the drifting snow is thrown to the ground, where it remains. Furthermore, the swinging of the bands has the effect that the snow cannot cling to the bands and thereby impair the brush-like character thereof by altering it to a smooth surface.

The costs of production of the bands will normally be so small that after removal they may be burned, and only the posts are stored until again to be used.

I declare that what I claim is:

1. A snow fence, comprising in combination a number of bands made of straw that is ailixed to a rope-like carrier member transversely thereto, a number of carrier posts spaced a Vdistance from each other, and supporting means applied to the posts for carrying the bands in horizontal rows above each other, said supporting means being so spaced relatively that the bands may swing free of each other between the posts.

2. A snow fence comprising a, plurality of bands each comprising a, rope-like carrier member having straw attached thereto to extend transversely thereof so as to provide a brush-like surface, at least two postsspaced'-away from each other along the bands an'd'i between which the bands are strung, and supporting means on the posts arranged to support the bands spaced one above the other sumciently to permit adjacent bands to swing freely relative to each other between the posts.

3. A snow fence according to claim 2, wherein the adjacent bands are spaced from each other at a distance substantially equal to their diameter.

. POUL THOLSTRUP. 

